CORPORATE SPONSORS BEGIN TO ROLL OUT FINAL FOUR PROMOS

Corporate sponsors' promotion of the NCAA men's and
women's basketball tournaments is examined by Terry Lefton
of BRANDWEEK, who highlights promos by Hershey, Sears and
Ocean Spray. Hershey is sponsoring a Final Four tickets
sweeps that will be delivered via POP and a national FSI
drop. In its "Soar to the Final Four" sweeps, Sears is
offering 10 winners a trip to the women's NCAA semis and
championship game in K.C. on March 27 and 29 and then on to
the men's final in San Antonio on March 30. The sweeps will
be supported by print and radio. Ocean Spray "is confining
most of its Final Four activity" to the San Antonio and K.C.
markets. With its NCAA sponsorship up for renewal, Ocean
Spray Manager/Sports & Event Marketing Tom Manchester said
the company will renew: "It's a no-brainer." AmEx, PepsiCo
and Thomson (RCA) are also up for renewal. Host
Communications Senior VP T.J. Nelligan, which handles the
NCAA's corporate partnerships, said, "We're cautiously
optimistic that we'll sign all four" (BRANDWEEK, 3/2 issue).
INSIDE STUFF: In the NCAA NEWS, David Pickle examines
the NCAA's corporate-partner program. The NCAA caps its
corporate partners at 20, and currently, there are five
vacancies, including in "key" areas such as the computer
software, airlines and car rental categories. Host
Communications has developed an "asset inventory," including
a 78-point list, detailing how partners can link with all
areas of the NCAA. Host's Nelligan says that companies can
appeal to three market segments by becoming an NCAA sponsor:
students and student-athletes, college and universities and
their administration, faculty and staff, and fans and
alumni. Nelligan adds not only are college sports fans
"appealing demographically," there are "more of them" than
there are pro sports fans (NCAA NEWS, 2/23 issue).